Entertainment

Ellen DeGeneres Accepts Oscars Hosting Gig With Twitter Speech

Detractors from last year's Oscars have something to celebrate: Months after the most recent Oscars host Seth MacFarlane said he wouldn't be reclaiming the spotlight, TV star Ellen DeGeneres tweeted Friday that she would be taking up the hosting mantle.

DeGeneres returns for take two, as she also hosted the 79th Academy Awards in 2007, for which she received a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program. The 86th Academy Awards will air March 2 on ABC.

"As a longtime friend, we had always hoped to find a project for us to do together and nothing could be more exciting than teaming up to do the Oscars," said Zadan and Meron. "She is beloved everywhere and we expect that the audience at the Dolby Theatre, and in homes around the globe, will be as excited by this news as we are."

DeGeneres has made a name for herself with The Ellen DeGeneres Show, which has racked up 45 Daytime Emmys during its 10 seasons. She got her start as an emcee at a local comedy club in New Orleans before hitting the TV and feature film circuit. DeGeneres recently announced the highly anticipated sequel to Finding Nemo, Disney-Pixar's Finding Dory, currently scheduled to be released in November 2015.

The Academy Awards will take place at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood and Highland Center.

2. What is in its hands?

3. Are they all the same?

No. The academy has awarded nearly 3,000 Oscar statuettes since 1929, but they all have different numbers emblazoned on them.

4. Why so naked?

Original academy member Cedric Gibbons designed the statuette. He had director, screenwriter and actor Emilio Fernandez pose nude to inspire the Oscar design. George Stanley sculpted it.

5. When was the statuette born?

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences gave out the first statuette in 1929. Back then, it was only referred to as the academy Award of Merit. Now, it primarily goes by its nickname: Oscar. The academy officially adopted the nickname in 1939.

6. Who makes them?

R. S. Owens and Company manufatures the statuettes in Chicago. The academy says it takes three to four weeks to create 50 Oscars.

7. What are they made of?

Original statuettes were gold-plated solid bronze, but now gold-plated britannia metal has replaced the bronze.

8. What else has changed?

The base size changed several times from 1929 to 1945. The base size has remained unchanged since 1945.

9. Who won the first statuette?

The academy handed the first statuette in 1929 to Emil Jannings, who won Best Actor for The Last Command and The Way of All Flesh.

10. Is it heavy?

The 13-and-half-inch Oscar is heavier than it appears, weighing 8.5 pounds.

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